Jess Redden opens up about gaining weight as she tells followers to 'be kind to yourself'

Taking to Instagram, the 28-year-old had a Q&A with her followers where one fan asked: “In recovery from an ED, any tips on dealing with gaining weight?”

Responding to the question, she said: “It sounds so basic but it’s helpful - be kind to yourself.”

“[Eating Disorders] centre around restriction and guilt so many negative emotions can be involved so try really hard to be proud of yourself for all your efforts and know that you are taking your life back,” she continued.

“Make a list of all the things you've gained along with that weight: freedom with food? Pleasure, enjoyment, memories? More energy, increased focus, strength? There are lots of things I'm sure for you to reflect on.”

“Gaining weight is something I've been working on mostly offline because I wanted to be as close to certain as possible that I am out the other end and have the mental ability to deal with it myself never mind share it with all of you,” she added.

“But I don't want to shy away from talking about uncomfortable topics. If it helps just one person, it's worth it.”

“The last of my uncomfortably small jeans I'm getting rid of that's another tip I would suggest doing is getting rid of all the clothes that no longer fit and it's an excuse to go shopping.”

The gym fanatic previously opened up about how an obsession with working out and under-eating can be dangerous.

Jess, who recently wed rugby star Rob Kearney, revealed that she had been undergoing a weight gain journey and explained that she was compelled to share her story because it resonated with so many of her followers.

Captioning an Instagram post, she wrote: “I wasn’t planning on sharing too much of my weight gain journey online mostly because I’ve only started to deal with it myself (offline!).”

“It can be extremely hard to have those conversations with yourself let alone sharing publicly however the overwhelming support and response I got moved me to tears.”

“But more than that my words and experience resonated with many people and again if I can help just one person by shining the spotlight on myself then I want to do that.”

“It’s taken years for me to view how I ate as disordered. I wasn’t fuelling my body adequately but was conditioned into thinking this was normal.”

“Under-eating is not normal, our amazing bodies need the calories and nutrients to function optimally, if we are too restrictive in our eating patterns it can lead to deficiencies and can even affect our adrenal glands which control our hormone production,” she continued.

“The first step is wanting to change for yourself not because anyone else says you need to. From there take it day by day it will be uncomfortable at times but what success story doesn’t have setbacks and hard times?”

“You are stronger than your thinking habits. Rewire those habits and you will be on the road to your healthiest self before you know it.”